Cleco Renews, Extends $275 Million In Revolving Credit Facilities.

PINEVILLE, La. -- Cleco Corp. (NYSE:CNL) and Cleco Power LLC have renewed two credit facilities totaling $275 million and extended the terms of both to five years.

The amount of the corporate facility is unchanged at $150 million, but it had previously been a three-year facility. The revolver for Cleco Power also remains at $125 million. It had previously been a 364-day facility.

"The longer-term facilities lower our costs and reduce our refinancing risk," said Dilek Samil, executive vice president and chief financial officer. "It's also a sign of the confidence lenders have in the financial strength of our company."

The lead agent was The Bank of New York, with JP Morgan/Chase and WestLB AG as co-lead arrangers and syndication agents. The co-documentation agents were KeyBank and Union Bank of Calif. A total of 16 banks participated in the transaction.

Cleco Corp. is a regional energy services company headquartered in Pineville, La. It operates a regulated electric utility company that serves 265,000 customers across Louisiana. Cleco also operates a wholesale energy business that has approximately 2,100 megawatts of generating capacity, including the 718-megawatt Perryville plant. The sale of the plant to a subsidiary of Entergy is pending. For more information about Cleco, visit www.cleco.com.